Brassiere



April 24, 1934. w. ROSENTHAL BRASSIERE 2 Sheets-sheaf. 1

Filed April 1, 1932 INVENTOR- WILLIAM RasmllAL av ms ATTORNI Y5.

Patented Apr. 24, 1934 UNITED STATES,

BRASSIERE William Rosenthal, New York, N. Y., assignor to Maiden Form Brassiere Co. Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application April 1, 1932, Serial No. 602,505

6 Claims.

This invention relates broadly to a new brassiere construction.

One of the objects of this invention is the provision of a brassiere which is adapted to support the bust in a natural position.

A further object of this invention is the provision of a brassiere construction of ,novel pocket conformation which, due to its adjustability, readily lends itself to easy conformation to the size of the wearers bust.

A further object of this invention isthe provi=- sion of a brassiere wherein a portion of one or both of the pockets may be readily detached and opened for nursing purposes, or for surgical treatment of the breasts or the dressing of wounds, or the like, while the brassiere itself is not removed from the wearer's body.

A still further object of the invention is the construction of a brassiere having pockets therein, which pockets are provided with moisture proof lining members to prevent breast exudations from contacting with and soiling other garments worn.

A still further object of this invention is the construction of a brassiere having pockets there-,

in constructed of irregular shaped pieces to provide a comfortable, conformable, arrangement which may bereadily opened and which does not include any shirring which might cause irritation to the wearer's skin.

A still further object of this invention is the creation of a novel brassiere pocket construction which may be of possible general adaptationin all types of brassieres or similar undergarments.

These and many other objects are secured by the brassiere construction herein disclosed.

This invention resides substantially in the combination, construction, arrangement and relative location of parts, all as will appear more fully hereinafter.

Referring to the drawings, in which the same reference numerals will be used throughout the several views to indicate the same or similar Figure 1 represents a perspective rear view of a brassiere employing the novel principles of my construction;

Fig. 2 is a perspective front view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a broken front view showing part of the upper edge of a pocket and the means whereby the pocket is retained in closed condition;

Fig.4 is a broken rear view thereof with the retaining means opened to show the construction thereof; a

Figs. 5 and 6 represent a portion of the elements which form the back bands;

Figs. '7 and 8 represent the pieces which form the pockets with the lining members therefor shown dotted in;

Fig. 9 represents a moisture proof outer lining member; and

Fig. 10 represents an absorbent inner lining member.

As pointed out in my copending application for United States Letters Patent Serial No. 602,506 filed April 1, 1932 considerable difiiculty has been encountered in the creation of a satisfactory, readily adjustable brassiere. It has also been desired to produce a convenient, comfortable, adjustable and readily accessible nursing brassiere, which might also be used in cases where surgical treatment or the application of repeated dressings to the breasts is necessary.

Accordingly it is the purpose of this invention to create a brassiere of novel pocket construction possible of general utilization in all types of brassieres and in which moisture proof means for rendering the resulting brassiere of valuable and useful construction for the purposes hereinabove indicated, are provided.

Referring now to the drawings, it will be noted that I have shown at 1 and 2 two breast receiving pockets, attached to the free ends of which are the respective back bands 3 and i. Attached 5 to the free end of the back band 4 is the usual hook strip 5 and attached to the free end of the back band '3 is the elastic insert 8 which may be covered with silk or the like. At the free end of the elastic insert 6 is the usual eye strip 7 adapted to engage with the hook strip 5. Connected to the back bands are the usual shoulder straps 8 and 9, respectively. As shown, the pockets 1 and 2 are secured together along the line of seam 10. Each pocket is formed of a piece of material of the type indicated as 11 in Figs. '7 and 8, respectively. This piece of material 11 is provided with a V-shaped out 12 therein so that the sides of the V may be drawn together i to form a pocket by any suitable draw means.

From Figs. 1 and 2 it will be observed that the shoulder straps -8 and 9 are each attached to the tips 13 of each of the ,V-shaped cuts in the pockets and a little engaging ribbon strip 14 is attached to each of the other tips of each of the 105 V-shaped cuts in the pockets. On the ends of each strip 14 there is provided male and female snap fasteners 15 and 16 which may be snapped together to present encircling loops each attached to one tip of the Y-shaped cuts in the doing both of snap fasteners 15, 16. When both sets of snap fasteners are undone a very substantial portion of the pockets in the brassiere front will be opened, as will be apparent from an inspection of Fig. 2. This construction renders the breasts accessible.

It is obvious from the foregoing that the novelv pocket construction just described is also possible of utilization not only in the case of nursing brassires but in any case where a comfortable, convenient and easily opened breast support is desired. Moreover, it is also clear that the construction disclosed might be very satisfactorily employed in any and all brassiere constructions other than nursing brassieres. In case, however, the brassiere is to be used as a nursing brassiere I propose to employ in connection therewith the lining members, generally indicated by 17, which I have fully described in my copending application above mentioned, but which as a matter of convenience I will briefly again describe here so that their cooperation with the brassiere in question will be readily understood.

These lining members 17 consist in what may be termed an outer moisture proof sheet of rubberized material or the like, 18, which is impervious to fluids and, secured to the interior surface thereof by tape binding, 19, an inner absorbent lining 20 of flannel or like material. The general formation of the flannel pocket is shown in Fig. 10. As will be noted it is provided with a V-shaped cut 21 therein. After cutting, the edges of the V are drawn together and stitched along the line 22 to form the lining flannel member into a pocket conformation. The outer moisture proof member 18 of rubberized material or the like, is provided uncut and is folded along the lines 23, 24, 25 in Fig. 9.

I have found that it is more satisfactory to provide the rubberized lining member 18 without any cuts or seams therein but rather with folds. The reason for this is that any cutting or stitching might provide a means for the escape of fluids which should be prevented from going past the lining member 18, if not completely absorbed by the flannel pocket member 20. The layout of the inner flannel pocket member 20 after cutting and sewing, is generally indicated by dotting in Fig. 8, while the general layout of the external rubberized pocket member 18, after folding and sewing, is roughly indicated by dotting in Fig. 7.

Secured to the flannel pocket member interiorly thereof are two tape members 26 and 27 which may be used to support a surgical dressing or the like. The composite lining elements are secured to the bottom edges 28 and 29 of the breast receiving pockets by sewing and are disposed within said pockets but otherwise not connected thereto.

As will be obvious from the foregoing, the brassire herein disclosed may be used substantially as follows: When desired either one or both of the pockets may be opened by undoing the snap fasteners 15, 16 as hereinbefore described. The

esaeso lining members are then readily accessible and may be either completely removed from contact with the breast, or sumciently removed therefrom to permit-of the substitution of a new dressing to be held by the tape members 26, 27 or other treatment. It will be noted that a very substantial portion of the front may be thus opened without the wearer taking the brassire ofi.

- It will be obvious from the foregoing that the brassiere construction I have disclosed incorporates many features which are of possible general adaptation in brassieres other than nursing brassires. For instance, the pocket construction disclosed may obviously be conveniently and valuably employed in connection with all types of brassieres. Moreover, the construction herein disclosed may be satisfactorily and successfully employed in cases where surgical treatment of the breast is necessary at repeated intervals, such as repeated dressing in the case of wounds or the like, as well as in the case of conditions where undue exudations from the breast are present.

I am, of course, aware that many changes in the details of constructionand relative arrangement of parts will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art and I do not, therefore, desire to be limited to the exact details by way of illustration, but rather to the spirit and scope of my invention as I define it in the appended claims.

What I seek to secure by United States Letters Patent is:

1. 'In a brassiere construction of the type described, two breast receiving pockets, each having an opening therein cut from the upper edge thereof, a back band secured to the 'free end of each pocket, means secured to one of said back bands and the top edge of a corresponding pocket adjacent said opening for supporting the brassiere onthe shoulders of the wearer, and means secured to the top edge of said pocket on the other side of said opening for detachably looping about and slidably engaging with said supporting means to close said opening.

2. In a brassiere construction of the type described, an irregular shaped member having an elongated cuttherein, means disposed at one end of one edge of said out for supporting said member, and 'means disposed at the same end but on the other edge of said out for slidably engaging with said supporting means to form a breast receiving pocket of said member.

3. In a brassiere construction of the type described, a breast receiving pocket having a cut formed in the upper edge thereof, ashoulder strap secured to said edge adjacent and on one side of said out, a snap fastener element secured to said edge adjacent the other edge of said out,

a tape element also secured to said edge and adjacent the other edge of said out, and a cooperformed with V-shaped cuts therein, means ineluding shoulder straps and detachable encircling loops disposed along the brassiere pocket edge and adjacent said cuts for drawing the edges thereof together, a plurality of back bands secured to the free ends of said pockets, and means intense disposed on the free ends of said back bands for securing the same together.

5. In a brassiere construction of the type described, two breast receiving pockets formed with v shaped cuts in the upper edges thereof, means secured to said edges adjacent said cuts for forming the brassiere front into pocket conformation, back bands secured to the free ends of said pockets, means disposed at the ends of said back bands for securing the brassire about the body of a wearer and a pocket lining member disposed in each pocket and secured to the lower edge thereof consisting in an outer moisture proof uncut liner and an inner absorbent liner secured together over the edges thereof for absorbing and imperviously preventing the transmission of breast exudations to other garments worn, said pocket lining member alone being freely removable at will from contact with the wearers breast.

S In a brassire construction of the type described plurality of breast receiving pockets secured together and formed with cuts therein permitting ready opening of a substantial portion of one or both of said pockets as a unit, means for normally holding said pockets closed in breast receiving conformation and an otherwise iree moisture-proof liner for each of said pockets secured to each of said pockets along the lower edge thereof, said liner being formed of an outer folded moisture-proof pocket element and. an inner absorbent sheeting pocket element having the edges of a V-shaped cut therein stitched together,

said absorbent pocket element being secured to- WILLIAM ROSENTHAL. 

